However, in a new interview with the Daily Mail he has refused to rule out the possibility of being persuaded to take to the stage again with the band, who split in 1987.

“I can’t speak for Morrissey, but I know that I’m too busy right now to get The Smiths on the road again,” he said. “Is that likely to change? Who knows?”

He added: “I can’t bear the thought of a Spandau Ballet-style comeback. What’s the point? Spandau are reforming, so they put on a big chicken-in-the-basket event, which is all they amounted to in the first place.

“Maybe someone should pay them £20 million not to reform. Supposedly we were offered $10 million (£6.2 million) to play a handful of Smiths gigs in 2007, and I wasn’t remotely tempted.”